By Ryan O'Connor
Staff Writer

Nicknamed “Death Alley,” a stretch of highway on Route 202/9 in Hopkinton, could soon receive a more favorable distinction.

The New Hampshire Department of Transportation has finalized plans to make safety upgrades to the stretch of highway running from Hopkinton to Hillsborough – which has been the scene of several fatalities.

The 8-mile stretch of Route 202/9 has been the subject of concern, with 156 accidents in the last three years. According New Hampshire Department of Transportation Project Manager Bill Oldenburg, there are some disturbing statistics.

“What we did was we went through and received the accident reports from (Hopkinton and Hennicker) police departments to see if there was an underlying pattern to some of these accidents,” said Oldenburg. “While the number of accidents is below state average, it is the severity of the crashes that stands out.”

Of the roughly 44 accidents per year, which occur on Route 202/9 in Henniker, Hillsborough and Hopkinton, 30 percent are fatal or involve serious injury, compared to a state average of only 10 percent, he said.

“We know that about 60 percent involved more than one vehicle, 25 percent involved intersections, and half involved people who went off the road and hit a fixed object like a guardrail or an embankment,” said Oldenburg. “Twenty percent of the the accidents involved animal collisions, which were very high. There’s been a total of 33; 30 were deer and three were moose.”

Most involved bad weather, excessive speed and impaired drivers, although an impaired driver includes those medicated, sleeping or fatigued, as well as those under the influence of illegal drugs and alcohol.

The highest rate of accidents occurred in Hopkinton where the Stump Field Road intersection with nine crashes and the Route 127 intersection at 12 accidents over the past three years.

“Ten percent happened at 127,” said Oldenburg. “That was the biggest spot, which makes sense because it has most of the traffic.”

To combat the trend, the highway department revealed its plans at a public meeting on April 19.

“We had been contacted by both Henniker and Hopkinton concerning the number of accidents along Route 202,” said Oldenburg. “We’ve had a few preliminary meeting that dealt mainly with town officials, but also had public involvement previous to (the April 19 public hearing).”

Included in the immediate plans, which will take place this summer, are a resurfacing project for the west side of the highway, and rumble strips for the center line and shoulder of the road.

“Since we know half of the drivers left the road and hit an object, the idea of the rumble strip is to bring their attention back to the road, so they can correct themselves and get back into the main lane,” said Oldenburg.

In 2008, another resurfacing project is planned.

“We’re looking into the possibility of adding more turning lanes for the intersections,” he said. “We are also thinking about improving the pavement markings and updating the signings and also placing mile marker identification, like those you see on the interstate, to help emergency rescue.”

Long-term improvements, include reducing the speed limit from 55 to 50, and improving the ramp at I-89, Exit 5. While roughly 15,000 vehicles travel along Route 202/9 per day, projections anticipate an increase of 8,000 over the next 20 years, to which Oldenburg said a proactive approach is necessary.

The highway department is also considering adding traffic signals at busy intersections such as Route 127 and West Hopkinton Road, although Oldenburg said public input will ultimately make those decisions.

“I think we need to work with both community to develop a plan to make the corridor safer for everyone and that’s our goal,” said Oldenburg. “Our plan is to meet again with the officials of both Henniker and Hopkinton to create a report for future roadway improventments. This is by no means the end.”